VH Footwear/TRUE by Scott Van Horne

[IPv6Freely 2092]

23 minutes ago, goodguy said:

Cool.. it is amazing how different people adapt. My son said he was bummed the Trues felt more “clunky” because they were incredibly comfortable. Maybe it’s just him. He also prides himself on his speed so he didn’t want anything that felt slower (to him). Maybe it’s just a time/getting used to them thing? 

Probably. They aren't that much heavier. They also feel "clunky" because they wrap the foot so well with no negative space at all, which may feel weird to people. I always describe them as a perfectly fitting pair of hiking boots. A nice even pressure all the way around the foot. 

Also, feeling slower and being slower are two different things. I imagine more effortless skating is certainly going to feel slower, too. I'd give him time to adapt before jumping ship. 

[oldtrainerguy28 478]

On 10/9/2018 at 9:43 PM, goodguy said:

Yeah, that didn’t work for us. I don’t agree the True can be profiled and/or adjusted to perform like a Mako. Two totally different skates. I had profile changed to match total forward leannof the Mako (including heel shims) and it still didn’t skate the same. The Mako has much more flexion forward and at the tendon guard which allows a very full stride and push. The True acts like a traditional skate, is much more stiff/durable and heavier. If you think you can make a True feel & perform like a Mako, I just don’t think it’s gonna happen. 

Well Sir, As much as I know JR is an amazing sharpener. I will gladly disagree with you and I am sure JR will back me on this. I have been working with True/VH from almost day one. My first big time client that had that same skate swap was Barb Underhill the Leafs and Lightning skating coach. She had zero issues and was comfortable within 5 mins. The second was Mike Ellis the skills coach the Leafs. While neither are playing now they have to perform at NHL speed and do everything needed to get guys like Marner and others doing what they do. Again it can be done not by matching the profiles or Pitch because yes both boots are different.  And again if had some input on the whole thing I am sure I could figure out something to make them work. 

That being said JR is awesome so I am sure he did everything you asked him to do and hes not comfortable.  It is what it is. 

 

As for the Tendon guard Scott Bio.mechancily designed the flexion to be what it needed to be so that it actually propelled the skater. That being said I did make Barbs smaller so it fit her calf better and she doesnt really  need one. 

 

My 2 cents. 

 

[VegasHockey 1280]

On 10/9/2018 at 6:50 PM, goodguy said:

The Trues we own don’t have a comfort edge but it hasn’t been a problem. True might add a custom edge for you?? The Bauer’s I’ve seen most people skate in seem to not wrap the ankle and have some space between above ankle and boot ... if the boot isn’t form fit well there can be some play and the leg/ankle slops around hitting the boot upper edge. Not sure if that’s the case but if the boot is form fit well, doesn’t seem the boot upper edge should be a problem. 

Ive added my own comfort edge to skates that players have needed it. Not very many have needed such. 

 

On 10/9/2018 at 6:53 PM, goodguy said:

Cool.. it is amazing how different people adapt. My son said he was bummed the Trues felt more “clunky” because they were incredibly comfortable. Maybe it’s just him. He also prides himself on his speed so he didn’t want anything that felt slower (to him). Maybe it’s just a time/getting used to them thing? 

It is amazing. But everyone is different and some are more patient than others. 

 

 

[dimpledballs 8]

Has a consensus been reached on whether getting the t-guard/low profile tongues or shotblockers are worth it? 

[VegasHockey 1280]

Got my 2017/2018 Bauer Vapor 1x pro-stock skates this weekend. With steel, they weigh in at 884 grams vs my 2018 True skates, without shot blockers, with Tuuks holders and the same steel, which tip the scales at 952 grams. 

[VegasHockey 1280]

4 minutes ago, dimpledballs said:

Has a consensus been reached on whether getting the t-guard/low profile tongues or shotblockers are worth it? 

Shot blockers, not worth it. T-Guard tongue, worth it. 

[Santos L Halper 90]

15 minutes ago, Nicholas G said:

Shot blockers, not worth it. T-Guard tongue, worth it. 

Agree on the tongue.  

Thing about the shot blockers, they make the skates stiffer - particularly laterally.  If you're a heavier player and want/need that extra support (or just like an extremely stiff boot...), they might be worth the extra weight.  

[VegasHockey 1280]

The True skate is stiff enough for most players so unless you are a VERY big guy I just dont see a benefit in them. I weigh 195lbs with a 23 BMI and am a very strong skater. I would not recommend the shot blockers to anyone unless they exceed 275lbs in weight. 

[Santos L Halper 90]

32 minutes ago, Nicholas G said:

The True skate is stiff enough for most players so unless you are a VERY big guy I just dont see a benefit in them. I weigh 195lbs with a 23 BMI and am a very strong skater. I would not recommend the shot blockers to anyone unless they exceed 275lbs in weight. 

Completely understand where you're coming from with this and I don't necessarily disagree.  

That said, the central point of the True skate is that it IS customizable for different skaters' needs/wants, so I don't think you can definitively put a 'weight threshold' on the applicability of shot blockers to an individual skater.  I (6'1", 225) don't have the shot blockers in mine and am very happy with the stiffness.  A guy I coach with (6'4", about 240) is on his second pair of True skates.  He didn't have the shot blockers on his first pair but does on this pair...and is MUCH happier with his second pair than he was with his first because he felt like the first wasn't quite stiff enough.  

Different strokes and all that...

[dimpledballs 8]

2 hours ago, Santos L Halper said:

Agree on the tongue.  

Thing about the shot blockers, they make the skates stiffer - particularly laterally.  If you're a heavier player and want/need that extra support (or just like an extremely stiff boot...), they might be worth the extra weight.  

 

2 hours ago, Nicholas G said:

Shot blockers, not worth it. T-Guard tongue, worth it. 

I get the idea with the shot blockers, I'll just use the plastic shotblockers instead of getting them in the skate. I'm a small guy so I don't think I need the extra stiffness.

What makes the t-guard tongue better than the normal one?

[Vet88 674]

5 hours ago, Nicholas G said:

The True skate is stiff enough for most players so unless you are a VERY big guy I just dont see a benefit in them. I weigh 195lbs with a 23 BMI and am a very strong skater. I would not recommend the shot blockers to anyone unless they exceed 275lbs in weight. 

You don't need to be a big guy to get benefit from stiff sidewalls. If you pronate in any way at all in skates (and don't skate enough to train it out) then you want them as stiff as you can possibly get. This will help to stop the boot from opening up as the ankle continuously puts pressure on the inside quarter. Eventually they will move but you will get a longer life out of them.  

Edited October 16, 2018 by Vet88

[BureKovy 20]

Took a shot off my inner ankle, really glad I got shot blocker.  I probably would of been out for the season with a fracture.  Instead it was a couple weeks with a deep contusion.

[smu 29]

On 10/6/2018 at 11:10 AM, Sniper9 said:

They probably lost a few customers doing this. Stopping putting on other holders I get. But boot only option actually saves them time too and would increase their sales. 

At least the holes on their holders line up wiyh ccm and tuuk. 

This is going to sound strange, but what if the holders are not on straight and the rivets are in the wrong place? Could this ever happen?

[shoot_the_goalie 281]

I have the shot blockers.  I'm not a big guy, but I like very stiff skates and I've taken a couple of hard shots off the boot and have felt pretty much nothing.  Also have the T-Guards, which I haven't used much, as I mainly use the stock tongue.  From my limited use, the T-Guards are noticeably stiffer fore/aft.

[flip12 714]

47 minutes ago, shoot_the_goalie said:

I have the shot blockers.  I'm not a big guy, but I like very stiff skates and I've taken a couple of hard shots off the boot and have felt pretty much nothing.  Also have the T-Guards, which I haven't used much, as I mainly use the stock tongue.  From my limited use, the T-Guards are noticeably stiffer fore/aft.

If that’s the concensus on those, I’ll be sure to stear clear of that option.

[VegasHockey 1280]

15 hours ago, smu said:

This is going to sound strange, but what if the holders are not on straight and the rivets are in the wrong place? Could this ever happen?

They pre-drill the boots. 

[Sniper9 530]

Sigh. My rivet woes continue. Although this incident is strictly a fluke where I took a slapshot to the holder and it popped two tickets and dislodged one, soa  total of three will need to be fixed. Had a good streak or them staying solid too.

 

 

[ZS11 0]

So I was looking for some secondary opinions on the TRUE custom player skates I just received. I ordered the skates back in late August and got them heat molded in store last weekend. When the process was done in store the guy working who did it for me laced the skates extremely tight all the way up to the top eyelet. The skates felt great on my feet but now I can't even get them to go on my feet. I emailed TRUE and they told me that I could heat up the eyelet area with a heat gun and move the area out to make more room for my feet to get in. I was wondering if anyone else has done this process with a heat gun or had a similar experience? On a side note when I placed my order for the skates I am 99% sure I ordered a white felt tongue but received black felt (not a big deal but just thought it was weird). I also noticed while inspecting my skates more closely that each of my skates had a left foot insole instead of 1 left and 1 right foot insole, I emailed TRUE about this and they said they would ship me a pair of new insoles immediately. Any insight or personal experience is appreciated, thanks.

[Sniper9 530]

3 hours ago, ZS11 said:

So I was looking for some secondary opinions on the TRUE custom player skates I just received. I ordered the skates back in late August and got them heat molded in store last weekend. When the process was done in store the guy working who did it for me laced the skates extremely tight all the way up to the top eyelet. The skates felt great on my feet but now I can't even get them to go on my feet. I emailed TRUE and they told me that I could heat up the eyelet area with a heat gun and move the area out to make more room for my feet to get in. I was wondering if anyone else has done this process with a heat gun or had a similar experience? On a side note when I placed my order for the skates I am 99% sure I ordered a white felt tongue but received black felt (not a big deal but just thought it was weird). I also noticed while inspecting my skates more closely that each of my skates had a left foot insole instead of 1 left and 1 right foot insole, I emailed TRUE about this and they said they would ship me a pair of new insoles immediately. Any insight or personal experience is appreciated, than

If you go on trues or even vhs YouTube channel you will clearly see them showing you how to heat gun the eyelet area. It's been discussed lots here. 

But th person lacing them up for you have done it at 80% tightness at most. You could do the method they told you to see if that helps. Or re heat mold the skates again with the proper toot beds (which is probably most ideal)

Edited October 30, 2018 by Sniper9

[ZS11 0]

I don't have a shop close to me so re baking them wouldn't be an option for me right now but the heat gun should do the trick.

[SILVER82 8]

On 10/11/2018 at 8:04 PM, oldtrainerguy28 said:

Well Sir, As much as I know JR is an amazing sharpener. I will gladly disagree with you and I am sure JR will back me on this. I have been working with True/VH from almost day one. My first big time client that had that same skate swap was Barb Underhill the Leafs and Lightning skating coach. She had zero issues and was comfortable within 5 mins. The second was Mike Ellis the skills coach the Leafs. While neither are playing now they have to perform at NHL speed and do everything needed to get guys like Marner and others doing what they do. Again it can be done not by matching the profiles or Pitch because yes both boots are different.  And again if had some input on the whole thing I am sure I could figure out something to make them work. 

That being said JR is awesome so I am sure he did everything you asked him to do and hes not comfortable.  It is what it is. 

 

As for the Tendon guard Scott Bio.mechancily designed the flexion to be what it needed to be so that it actually propelled the skater. That being said I did make Barbs smaller so it fit her calf better and she doesnt really  need one. 

 

My 2 cents. 

 

In your quote you say "Again it can be done not by matching the profiles or pitch because both are different" Im confused.  I will most likely go from makos to trues someday and am curious about this.  What did you mean? do you mean by using spacers? Or do you actually mean the trues can be profiled to feel the same as the makos?

 

Does anyone know if the skate can me built differently to feel more like the mako? making them not as stiff?

[goodguy 7]

27 minutes ago, SILVER82 said:

Does anyone know if the skate can me built differently to feel more like the mako? making them not as stiff?

Tried to do this without success. Blade pitch, spacers between holder and heel, even so far as to cutting slits in the tendon guard ribs for more rearward flexion (don’t do this). Nothing really worked. Just a different skate... stiffer, heavier. I personally gave up on the notion of the True ever “feeling like a Mako” just because they share some common origin.  

[flip12 714]

4 hours ago, goodguy said:

Tried to do this without success. Blade pitch, spacers between holder and heel, even so far as to cutting slits in the tendon guard ribs for more rearward flexion (don’t do this). Nothing really worked. Just a different skate... stiffer, heavier. I personally gave up on the notion of the True ever “feeling like a Mako” just because they share some common origin.  

Did you contact them about making a new pair closer to the Mako feel for you? @Nicholas G seems happy with his second pair somewhat following that approach.

[IPv6Freely 2092]

16 hours ago, ZS11 said:

So I was looking for some secondary opinions on the TRUE custom player skates I just received. I ordered the skates back in late August and got them heat molded in store last weekend. When the process was done in store the guy working who did it for me laced the skates extremely tight all the way up to the top eyelet. The skates felt great on my feet but now I can't even get them to go on my feet. I emailed TRUE and they told me that I could heat up the eyelet area with a heat gun and move the area out to make more room for my feet to get in. I was wondering if anyone else has done this process with a heat gun or had a similar experience? On a side note when I placed my order for the skates I am 99% sure I ordered a white felt tongue but received black felt (not a big deal but just thought it was weird). I also noticed while inspecting my skates more closely that each of my skates had a left foot insole instead of 1 left and 1 right foot insole, I emailed TRUE about this and they said they would ship me a pair of new insoles immediately. Any insight or personal experience is appreciated, thanks.

Yes I have done it. Ended up using a heat gun to soften the tops and sticking a softball into the top of the skate (to keep it open) and tossing it in the freezer to quickly cool it. Worked great. 

As for the insole - yes I had insole issues also and they replaced them immediately. They should be able to replace the tongues also if they aren't what you ordered. They're attached by velcro so its an easy swap out.

As for re-baking, I baked mine at home in the first place anyway. Never took them to a shop. Its easy if you're careful. 

[smu 29]

1 hour ago, flip12 said:

Did you contact them about making a new pair closer to the Mako feel for you? @Nicholas G seems happy with his second pair somewhat following that approach.

 

1 hour ago, flip12 said:

Did you contact them about making a new pair closer to the Mako

Did you first ask your LHS to convey what you wanted in your skate after the scan was completed and passed onto True?

If so, I would think you should have got what you asked for and if they could not do it that should have been made known to you.